Family Dollar Recalls Hundreds of Products
Family Dollar is issuing a massive recall of hundreds of over-the-counter drugs, toothpaste, and other products because they were stored at the wrong temperature before they were shipped to stores across the country. The recall covers items regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration between May 1 and June 10, 2022, the retailer said in a statement published on the FDA's website last Monday. Family Dollar stores that received the products were told to pull them off their shelves immediately.
The recall covers over 430 products that were "stored outside of labeled temperature requirements," Family Dollar said. Customers who bought products recalled should bring them to the Family Dollar store where they were purchased for a refund, even without a receipt. The recalled products were sent to 47 states. Family Dollar stores in Delaware did not receive the recalled products. (Family Dollar does not have stores in Hawaii and Alaska.)
The full list of recalled products can be found by clicking here. The list includes various kinds of Colgate and Crest toothpaste, Dayquil liquid, Icy Hot Muscle Rub, Dr. Scholls Clear Away Wart Remover, Zarbees Natural Child Cough and Mucus Relief Syrup, Softsoap Antibacterial Liquid Hand Soap, and Listerine Cool Mint Mouthwash. Other products on the list include items from Alka Seltzer, Vaseline, Old Spice, Vicks, Dawn, Advil, and Prilosec.
This is the second major recall involving Family Dollar stores this year. In February, over 400 stores were closed after more than 1,000 dead rodents were found at the company's distribution facility in West Memphis, Arkansas, reports CBS News. The dead rodents were discovered during fumigation. The recall covers products sold at stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee between Jan. 1 and February 2022. FDA-approved dietary supplements, cosmetics, animal foods, medical devices, and over-the-counter medications were among the recalled products.
The FDA began an investigation into the Arkansas distribution facility after receiving a consumer complaint in January. The inspectors found live and dead rodents, as well as "rodent feces and urine, evidence of gnawing, nesting and rodent odors throughout the facility, dead birds and bird droppings, and products stored in conditions that did not protect against contamination," the FDA said. Family Dollar's internal records showed over 2,300 rodents were found at the facility between March and September 2021. The FDA's investigation finished on Feb. 11.
"Families rely on stores like Family Dollar for products such as food and medicine. They deserve products that are safe," Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs Judith McMeekin said in February. "No one should be subjected to products stored in the kind of unacceptable conditions that we found in this Family Dollar distribution facility." In April, Arkansas sued Family Dollar over the issue, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said.